1. Field
Embodiments of the present invention relate to a battery assembly with cooling.
2. Description of Related Art
A rechargeable battery differs from a primary battery in that it is designed to be repeatedly charged and discharged, while the latter typically makes only the irreversible conversion of chemical to electrical energy. Low-capacity rechargeable batteries are used as the power supply for small electronic devices, such as cellular phones, notebook computers and camcorders, while high-capacity rechargeable batteries are used as the power supply for driving motors in hybrid vehicles and the like.
In general, rechargeable batteries include an electrode assembly including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator interposed between the positive and negative electrodes, a case receiving the electrode assembly, and an electrode terminal electrically connected to the electrode assembly. In this case, the case may have a cylindrical or rectangular shape depending on the purpose of use and the usage of the rechargeable battery, and electrolyte solution is injected into the case for charging and discharging the rechargeable battery through an electrochemical reaction of the positive electrode, the negative electrode, and the electrolyte solution.
Such a rechargeable battery may be used as a battery module formed of a plurality of unit batteries coupled in series so as to be used for driving a motor of a hybrid vehicle that requires high energy density. That is, the battery module is formed by connecting an electrode terminal of each of the plurality of unit batteries in consideration of power required for motor driving such that a high power rechargeable battery can be realized.
In order to safely use the battery module, heat generated from the rechargeable battery should be efficiently emitted. If the heat emission is not sufficiently performed, a temperature variation might occur between the respective unit batteries so that the battery module cannot generate a desired amount of power for motor driving. In addition, when the internal temperature of the battery is increased due to the heat generated from the rechargeable battery, an abnormal reaction may occur therein, and thus charging and discharging performance of the rechargeable battery may be deteriorated and the life-span of the rechargeable battery may be shortened.
Recently, a high power rechargeable battery that includes a non-aqueous electrolyte having a high energy density has been developed. When the high-power rechargeable battery is configured with high capacity, the rechargeable battery is charged and discharged by high current, and the internal temperature of the rechargeable battery is increased to a significant level depending on a use state. Thus, a cooling device that can cool the rechargeable battery by effectively emitting heat generated from the battery is required.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.